Kakao founder set to attend arrest warrant hearing over alleged stock manipulation

Kim Beom-su, the founder of Kakao Corp., was to attend a court hearing Monday on an arrest warrant requested for him over alleged stock price manipulation related to the firm's takeover of K-pop powerhouse SM Entertainment last year. The Seoul Southern District Court was scheduled to hold a hearing for Kim around 2 p.m., two weeks after prosecutors questioned the tech tycoon about his alleged involvement in the manipulation of SM shares. The court is expected to decide whether to issue an a

Social AffairsJuly 22, 2024

Biden drops out of presidential race, endorses Harris as successor

US President Joe Biden dropped out of the presidential race Sunday as his poor debate performance last month exacerbated concerns about his old age and touched off unrelenting calls to end his reelection campaign. Biden, 81, made the announcement, bowing to mounting pressure from Democratic lawmakers, donors and voters. He officially endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris to become the Democratic Party's nominee to take on former President Donald Trump in the Nov. 5 general election. It is u

Foreign AffairsJuly 22, 2024

Presidential office holds emergency meeting to address damage from recent heavy rain

The presidential office held an emergency meeting Sunday to assess the damage caused by recent downpours and decided to establish an inter-agency headquarters to prevent further damage from additional heavy rain or typhoon forecast next week. The government also plans to promptly carry out emergency repairs to damaged facilities by providing special grants and operating emergency recovery teams, according to Jeong Hye-jeon, the presidential spokesperson, during a press briefing. Last week, Presi

Social AffairsJuly 21, 2024

'79% of child victims of family members' sex crimes were 13 or younger when it first happened'

An overwhelming majority of the child victims in sex crimes perpetrated by a family member were aged 13 or younger when they were first victimized, a parliamentary report showed Sunday. The National Assembly Research Service compiled a report based on its survey of the four juvenile protective facilities for the victims of sex crimes by family members, which were established in 2010. Of the 316 children and teens currently under protection, 115 -- or 36.4 percent -- were first subject to the c

Social AffairsJuly 21, 2024

Victim of 2004 Miryang gang rape case speaks in rare public address

The primary victim in an infamous 2004 gang rape case by high school boys discussed the case in a rare interview with a local media outlet that aired Saturday, explaining to the public the pains she had to endure due to the horrid incident and secondary damages that followed. The victim, referred to as Kim, not her real name, in a recent episode of "Unanswered Questions" on SBS said she had been living in fear of retribution from the 44 alleged perpetrators of the incident in Miryang

Social AffairsJuly 21, 2024

Leadership race heats up for major parties

The leadership race for the two major parties here heated up in recent days, with the main opposition kicking off its primaries and the ruling party wrapping up its weekslong contest with an election scheduled for Tuesday. Ex-main opposition leader and Democratic Party of Korea Rep. Lee Jae-myung on Sunday won a primary in Gangwon Province, the third of the 15-leg race across the country, as he tries to secure a second term. Lee won a whopping 90.02 percent of the total ballots cast by registere

PoliticsJuly 21, 2024

Prosecution probes first lady on Dior bag scandal, alleged stock manipulation

Prosecutors questioned First Lady Kim Keon Hee face-to-face for the first time from Saturday to early Sunday on allegations of her involvement in a stock manipulation case, as well as receiving a Christian Dior handbag and other luxury gifts in exchange for favors, the South Korean prosecution confirmed Sunday. The Seoul Central District Prosecutors Office announced Sunday that Kim was questioned for around 12 hours, from 1:30 p.m. Saturday to 1:20 a.m. Sunday, at an undisclosed government build

Social AffairsJuly 21, 2024

S. Korea begins full-scale anti-NK broadcasts against trash balloons

The South Korean military announced Sunday it has switched from rotational anti-Pyongyang loudspeaker broadcasts to full-scale broadcasting, simultaneously blaring from all border speakers as of Sunday afternoon. The action comes in response to North Korea's continued launch of trash-laden balloons into South Korea, despite repeated warnings to stop, especially during the monsoon season. "As previously warned multiple times, our military will begin full-scale loudspeaker broadcasting t

North KoreaJuly 21, 2024

Trump continues to flaunt bond with N. Korean leader on campaign trail

Former US President Donald Trump once again boasted of his friendship with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un during his campaign rally in Michigan on Saturday, just two days after delivering similar remarks at the Republican National Convention in Wisconsin. "You know, a lot of times the press would say, 'He gets along with Kim Jong-un. North Korea has a lot of nuclear weapons.' I got along with them great. You were never in danger with me as your president. It’s a good thing

Social AffairsJuly 21, 2024

Junior doctors job, test registration open Monday

Starting Monday, local training hospitals will begin posting job openings for junior doctors who will begin training in the second half of the year, and the registration for the state-run medical license test will open in the government's latest steps to fill the months-long medical void. The recruitment comes after 110 out of 151 medical institutions that hired junior doctors last week completed processing the resignations of 7,648 junior doctors who left their worksites in mid-February to

Social AffairsJuly 21, 2024

Koreans' chicken intake continues to rise, hits two per month: data

South Koreans ate an average of more than two chickens per month last year, doubling their per capita chicken consumption over the past two decades, according to data released Sunday. Statistics from the Korea Rural Economic Institute show that per capita chicken consumption reached 26 birds last year, with domestic production accounting for 20 birds per person and imports making up the remaining six. By the weight of chicken meat consumed, excluding bone weight, the per capita figure increase

Social AffairsJuly 21, 2024

N. Korea again sends trash-carrying balloons into S. Korea: JCS

North Korea has again launched balloons presumed to be carrying trash toward South Korea, the Joint Chiefs of Staff said Sunday, just three days after a similar launch. The JCS said the balloons appeared to be traveling toward the northern part of Gyeonggi Province that surrounds Seoul and advised the public not to touch fallen balloons and to report them to the military or police. With the latest launch, North Korea has sent more than 2,000 trash-filled balloons into the South over nine occasio

North KoreaJuly 21, 2024

Cho Kuk reelected as leader of minor Rebuilding Korea Party

Former Justice Minister Cho Kuk was reelected the chief of the minor Rebuilding Korea Party on Saturday, officials said. Cho won his second term after winning 99.9 percent approval from party members during a convention held in the city of Suwon, south of Seoul, as he was the only candidate running for party leader. Cho formed the party in March, one month ahead of the general elections on April 10, and had led the party until earlier this month when he resigned to run for reelection. His party

PoliticsJuly 20, 2024

Ex-DP chief wins sweeping victory in Jeju primary for party leadership

Rep. Lee Jae-myung, former leader of the main opposition Democratic Party (DP), won a primary on Jeju Island for party leader Saturday, as he eyes to secure a second term. In June, Lee resigned to run for reelection as the current party rule stipulates the party chair must resign from his leadership position to be eligible as a candidate. During Saturday's primary, the first of the 15-leg race across the country, Lee won 82.5 percent of all ballots cast by registered party members on the is

PoliticsJuly 20, 2024

[Weekender] Save the date for affordable, unique weddings in Seoul

When it comes to his big day, hotels, wedding halls and convention centers have never been an option for Bae Sung-jae. The 38-year-old always wanted a wedding that broke from the Korean norm, where hundreds of guests gather at an indoor venue to watch the newlyweds make their wedding vows, followed by a meal or a buffet, and then a photo session. The budget was also an issue. Wedding venues charge not only for food and drinks but also use of the venue, screen for videos and flowers. Instead, he

Social AffairsJuly 20, 2024

Rape suspect’s 18-year run from law ended by a nurse’s sharp eye

A man wanted on suspicion of rape has been apprehended after 18 years on the run after a nurse recognized him from a wanted poster. The police in Mokpo, South Jeolla Province said Friday that the suspect - 54-year-old Kim Yang-min - was apprehended after a nurse at a clinic in Seoul reported the man to the police, having recognized his face from a police poster of criminal suspects on the run. Kim is suspected of breaking into a home in Mokpo in 2006 and sexually assaulting the resident. The inv

Social AffairsJuly 20, 2024

S. Korea blares propaganda broadcasts for 3rd day against NK balloons

South Korea's military on Saturday continued to send propaganda loudspeaker broadcasts toward North Korea in response to the North's repeated launch of trash-carrying balloons across the border, sources said. The anti-Pyongyang broadcasts started from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m., the sources said. The South Korean military had warned it could increase the number of loudspeakers and switch to a full-scale broadcast if the North stages further provocations, including sending trash balloons across

North KoreaJuly 20, 2024

Rival parties wrangle over Yoon's impeachment petition at parliamentary hearing

The ruling and main opposition parties clashed Friday as a parliamentary committee held its first hearing to address an online petition demanding the impeachment of President Yoon Suk Yeol. The hearing, which focused on allegations that Yoon interfered in a probe into the death of a young Marine surnamed Chae, was marred by physical scuffles and yelling as the ruling People Power Party (PPP) staged a rally outside of the meeting room. Rep. Jeon Hyun-heui of the main opposition Democratic Party (

PoliticsJuly 19, 2024

Some budget airlines, online games in S. Korea affected by IT outage: sources

Some low-cost airlines and game companies in South Korea saw problems with booking or experienced interruptions in their servers Friday, industry sources said, in an apparent IT disruption that affected the global airline and financial sectors. The cyber outage affected the airport ticketing of Jeju Air Co., Eastar Jet Co. and Air Premia Inc., prompting employees to conduct check-ins by hand, according to sources. The three airlines use computer systems based on Microsoft's cloud service, t

Social AffairsJuly 19, 2024

More restaurants allowed to hire foreign kitchen assistants

In addition to Korean restaurants, Chinese, Japanese and Western restaurants will also be able to hire foreign workers from China and 15 Southeast Asian and Central Asian countries as kitchen assistants under the Employment Permit System. The government has finalized its plans to ease requirements for a pilot program that aims to include the restaurant industry in the EPS system. Initially, the project was to allow only Korean restaurants, and restaurants with fewer than five employees had to ha

Foreign AffairsJuly 19, 2024